About Newcastle Notation

Newcastle notation was first considered by the then members of the Instep Research Team (now Instep), Cath Hays, Julie Jarman, Alice and Chris Metherell, Alice Smith and Ed Wilson, in early 1981. The need for a standard notation system arose from both discussions within the team and from wider discussions at the Traditional Dance Conference, Alsager, in March of that year.

The first edition was published in 1981 (Hays et al., Newcastle Notation, Newcastle: Newcastle Series (1981)), followed by a second revised edition in 1995 (Craigs, I., and Metherell, C., Newcastle Notation, Newcastle: Newcastle Series (1995)). This electronic edition, prepared by Chris Metherell, contains minor editorial changes from that published in 1995 but omits the introductory material and bibliography.